Pedestrian, bike advocates to rally for safety improvements in SF

In the wake of several recent deaths, bicyclist and pedestrian advocates are planning to hold a rally outside San Francisco City Hall on Tuesday as they continue to call for safer streets.

Members of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, Walk San Francisco and other groups will gather for the noon rally, and will then attend a 1 p.m. meeting of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency board of directors to voice their concerns.

The advocates want the city to adopt what they're calling "Vision Zero," a plan to eliminate deaths and serious injuries to bicyclists and pedestrians in San Francisco over the next 10 years.

Twenty-one pedestrians and four cyclists died in collisions with cars in San Francisco in 2013, including a 6-year-old girl who was struck and killed on New Year's Eve.

The city's Board of Supervisors and Police Commission held a joint hearing on the issue last week, and police Chief Greg Suhr said his department will focus on accident hotspots, many of which are in the South of Market and Tenderloin neighborhoods.

The advocacy groups are calling on the city to also make safety improvements at various intersections, and will consider some of the changes at Tuesday's SFMTA board meeting.

Mayor Ed Lee said the city is also launching a traffic safety awareness campaign next month, and will develop training policies for operators of large trucks and construction vehicles in the city.

More information about "Vision Zero" can be found on the bike coalition's website at www.sfbike.org/main/city-and-community-leaders-call-for-vision-zero.